Being alive is a fleeting venture. I never quite understood the term “alive” anyway. “A” means “not” as in “a”mmoral. Saying this, “live” indicates something with life. Therefore, the term really means “no life.” My etymology may be misguided. Truthfully I know it is following a brief study of the word. But my point is hidden. Too often, we are content “to be alive, but never live.” The meaning of life is not in a repetitious heartbeat, rather a thoroughly brilliant motor running we call the soul. Jesus Christ came to give life and give it to the fullest (Galatians 2:20). Everyone who gains or ..read more

Everyone in here is innocent, you know that? ~ Red [Shawshank Redemption] Prison. The very thought terrifies the population. In our minds, we think in varying ways, “Be good! Or you locked up!” It is a primitive thought, but extremely necessary for the seems of civilization to remain stitched. Saying this, there is a particular twisted beauty behind the walls of concrete. The beauty of prison is that you always get to say you are innocent. It’s only when you are free you can admit you were guilty and saved. Look at the condition of the world, in a spiritual sense. People fall in a number of ca ..read more

“To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is all” ~ Oscar Wilde When I was a younger Christian, I remember that many of my Bible studies were guided by the many questions that I had. A question would develop in my mind and then I would quickly refer to my Bible to find answers. Some of these questions included: “Where does God come from?” “Is there unforgivable sin?” and… “Are there more Christians or non-Christians?” This last question eventually developed into the question, “are there more people in Heaven or Hell?” Now as a more mature Christian this answer seems ob ..read more

Recently, I was sitting in a cafe reading a nice book and drinking some coffee. This is one of my favorite things to do and it is often in these moments that my mind wanders. As I sat there, I I drank most of my coffee but then got carried away in the contents of my book. So, what was left of my coffee went cold. When the waitress came around with piping hot coffee, she poured this coffee in the 1/4 of cold coffee I had left in my mug. And would you know it? The coffee was the perfect drinking temperature. If that touch of coldness was not in that mug, the coffee would have been unbearable. Fr ..read more

This is a prayer of boldness for my congregation. Much of this prayer derives from Philippians 1:12-24. Now We Pray *** Father, I know the world in which we currently live, is not our home. But, this I know. That You work all things to the good of those who love You and are called according to Your purpose (Romans 8:28) Therefore, let Your purpose dwell richly in me for the furtherance of The Gospel (Philippians 1:12). As a church, let our bonds be made manifest in all the palaces, all other places, and many of the brethren in the Lord (Philippians 1:12-14). By our bonds, may the Church not wa ..read more

“He is proud, knowing nothing, but doting about questions and strifes of words, whereof cometh envy, strife, railings, evil surmisings, Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself. But godliness with contentment is great gain.” ~ 1 Timothy 6:4-6 When you read these devotionals, you are acquiring snack-sized bits of Gospel truth. This is truth which will enrich, edify, and supplement Bible studies. However that is all they are intended to be- a supplement. A snack. A single chip in the bag that is your so ..read more

In 1978, a radio comedy was broadcasted from BBC which soon took the world by storm. It was a comedy which subtly took jabs at the intelligence of humanity and showed the frivolous routines we invest so heavily into. This work, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, is about a human who just before the world ended, was taken on an adventure across the galaxy and learns much about humanity away from it. In this broadcast, which soon became a series of novels, movie adaptations, etc., there were many relevant nuggets of wisdom that can only be learned through obscure comedy. In one scene, their i ..read more

Growing up, I had fond memories of spending time with my grandparents, who like me, enjoy learning new things. One outlet that we had for doing so was gathering around after school and watching Jeopardy! recordings from the night prior. I would hop off the bus, grab a popsicle, go inside, and we would get ready to play Jeopardy. I still find a thrill every chance I get to play from my couch, even as an adult. But as I get older, I also recognize that some of the Jeopardy rules are peculiar. For instance, in Jeopardy a question is hardly ever asked. In Jeopardy, the answer is giving before the ..read more

“The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun” ~ Ecclesiastes 1:9 Recently, while driving to work I had heard a radio host suggest that maybe the human race has not advanced as much as we think we have. I mean, yeah. We got cards, cool knick-nacks, gizmos, and what-nots. But we have nothing that hasn’t been seen in one form or another. Thousands of years ago, humans created one of the most profound forms of communications. They inscribed pictures onto small tablets for everyone to see. Today, on ..read more

I was recently playing a video game that I once enjoyed when I was a child. The game Skyrim is a fantasy Middle Ages game which stems from the popular series The Elder Scrolls. I have recently began playing this game as a way to escape from stressful days and to ease my mind, but in turn recently had it provoke thought in a way I least expected. It was in this game that I was adventuring and I ran upon the likes of a mercenary. Many know what mercenaries and what they do. They are bad news. They are professional soldiers will go to war for a foreign army in return for pay. Better put, they exc ..read more